On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings from December 14 – 23, plus on Christmas Eve, MOTAT visitors can look forward to celebrating the magic of Christmas at ‘MOTAT Nights, Christmas Lights.’

The festive event will be open from 8pm to 11pm and will include a myriad of things to see and do for the whole family.

MOTAT Marketing Manager, Deanna Wharton says MOTAT is the perfect place to share the joy of Christmas, especially when its Victorian Village is lit up with thousands of beautiful, shimmering fairy lights.

“The whole atmosphere of MOTAT changes at night, and with a fantastic live entertainment line up and Christmas displays set amongst the sparkling lights we are sure our visitors will have a truly magical lead up to Christmas.”

“We’ll also be offering night rides on our heritage trams so visitors will be able to enjoy the Christmas lights from a special vantage point,” says Mrs Wharton.

Entry to ‘MOTAT Nights, Christmas Lights’ is by gold coin donation, with all proceeds going towards purchasing Christmas gifts for New Zealand charities Barnardos and the Auckland City Mission.

GIVE AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE AT MOTAT

Continuing the spirit of Christmas, MOTAT is encouraging visitors to share the joy and make someone else’s Christmas extra special this festive season.

From December 1-24, visitors to MOTAT have the option of donating a Christmas present from MOTAT’s gift shop, instead of paying the normal admission fee.

All donated gifts will be given to Barnardos and the Auckland City Mission to help out families in need this Christmas.
“’Give and You Shall Receive’ is an initiative that will ensure many more Kiwi families will have gifts to give to their loved ones this Christmas,” says Deanna Wharton, MOTAT Marketing Manager.

“MOTAT takes pride in being a community-oriented organisation, which includes educating young kiwis and engaging in activities like this. Last year, we donated over 6,600 gifts to charity thanks to the support of our visitors, and we are hoping the initiative will attract just as much support this year,” she says.

Barnardos representative Christine Olsen says the gifts will be very well received as Christmas can be a tough time for some New Zealand families who are unable to provide presents for their children.

“The generous gifts provided to Barnardos by MOTAT’s visitors will be distributed to children in families where deprivation has a real impact on their experience of Christmas. We thank all those who are able to make a child’s Christmas a happy one this year.”

Auckland City Missioner Diane Robertson was blown away with MOTAT’s offer to provide Christmas presents to its clients.

“Thanks to MOTAT, we’ll be able to share the Christmas joy to a lot of Aucklanders who aren’t so lucky. A lot of our clients miss the opportunity to give their loved ones gifts at Christmas so this initiative will definitely make a big difference.”

If you would like to celebrate this Christmas in a magical way, head down to MOTAT with your family from December 1 – 24.ENDSNote to Editor:
MOTAT is open from 10am – 5pm every day excluding Christmas Day. For more information visit www.motat.org.nz

Location:
MOTAT, Great North Road and Meola Road, Western Springs

Costs:
Entry to MOTAT Nights, Christmas Lights is by gold coin donation.
Entry to MOTAT during the day from 1-24 December is free if you purchase and donate a gift from the MOTAT gift shop to the same or greater value as your normal entry fee*

*Gifts must be from the selected MOTAT gift range and be of equal or greater value to admission cost. No pre-purchased or pre-loved gifts please. Not valid in conjunction with any other offer.